It may seem strange that humans have evolved from fish, but the evidence can be found not just in fossils but also within our own bodies. Your face is your most expressive feature; it tells the world what you are feeling, who you are and where you come from. Although no two faces are exactly the same, they share a number of common characteristics; a couple of eyes, a nose, a mouth and a philtrum. The philtrum is the groove on your top lip that lies just beneath your nose. You see it every day in the mirror so you probably never think about it It has no obvious function. Instead it is an accident of our origins, a clue to our fishy past and how our faces first formed. Your face is formed in the womb in the first couple of months of life, from when you were the size of a grain of rice to when you were the size of a kidney bean. The way this happens only really makes sense when you realise that, strange though it may sound, we are actually descended from fish. The early human embryo looks very similar to the embryo of any other mammal, bird or amphibian - all of which have evolved from fish. Your eyes start out on the sides of your head, but then move to the middle. The top lip along with the jaw and palate started life as gill-like structures on your neck. Your nostrils and the middle part of your lip come down from the top of your head. There is no trace of a scar; the plates of tissue and muscle fuse seamlessly. But there is, however, a little remnant of all this activity in the middle of your top lip - your philtrum. This whole process, the bits coming together of the various elements to produce a recognisable human face, requires great precision. To fuse correctly the three sections must grow and meet at precisely the right time in the womb. If the timing is out, by as little as an hour, the baby may grow up with a cleft lip or cleft lip and palate, which can be extremely disfiguring. Around the world one in 700 babies are born with clefts. Fishy features There are other odd things about human anatomy that can only really be explaineFor example, if you were to cut up a shark you would discover that its gonads are lodged up in its chest, behind its liver. d by our fishy ancestry. Like the shark our gonads also start life high up, near the liver. But unlike the shark they need to descend. In a woman they descend and become the ovaries, located conveniently near the uterus and the fallopian tubes In men, they become the testes; but to get down and fill the scrotum they have to make a far longer and more tortuous journey south. One consequence of this journey is the creation of a weakening in the abdominal wall. And as a result, men are far more prone than women to what are known as inguinal hernias. An inguinal hernia can appear as a lump in the groin area and may be painful; the lump normally disappears if you lie down. The lump is actually the contents of your gut protruding through that weakness in the muscle wall left behind by the descent of the testes. Inguinal hernias often require surgery, and if you are unfortunate enough to get one, blame it on fish. Hiccups An American called Charles Osborne has the dubious honour of holding a record for the longest recorded bout of hiccups - 68 years worth, from 1922 to 1990. It seems that again it is our fishy ancestors who are partly to blame. A hiccup is caused by a spasm of the diaphragm, a big muscle in the chest, followed by an involuntary gulp. Both these actions have watery roots. In fish the nerves that activate breathing take a short journey from an ancient part of the brain, the brain stem, to the throat and gills. In us, it is more complicated. To breathe properly, our brain stem has to send messages not just to the throat, but down to the chest and diaphragm. This complex arrangement means that the nerves are prone to spasm, which can initiate hiccups. Once a hiccup has started, it is kept going by a simple motor reflex that we seem to have inherited from an amphibian ancestor. or the ancient tadpole, the nerve controlling this reflex served a useful purpose, allowing the entrance to the lung to remain open when breathing air but closing it off when gulping water - which would then be directed only to the gills. For humans and other mammals who hiccup, it has no value but does provide another bit of evidence of our common ancestry.

What is Drawing Down the Moon? In this beautiful and powerful rite, the practitioner invokes the Goddess directly into herself (or himself, as the case may be). In some variations, a High Priestess (HPs) may go into a trancelike state and speak the words of the Goddess, or it may be a formal monologue calling upon the Goddess in her many forms. Regardless of how you practice it, Drawing Down the Moon is best performed on the night of the full moon, or on one of the nights immediately before. While it’s more suitable to be performed outside, if the weather is inclement or your neighbors are easily startled, you can hold the ritual indoors. Jason Mankey at Patheos explains, "Drawing Down the Moon is the process of directly calling deity into a mortal vessel. When a High Priestess (or Priest) draws down the moon she literally draws the Goddess inside of herself. Once the Goddess is there, the Priestess is absent, and the Goddess speaks through her daughter and interacts with those around Her... Drawing down the moon is hard work, a lot of people aren’t ready to do it, and it’s not something you generally see at (open) large rituals." Basic Drawing Down Ritual There are many different ways to draw down the moon, and the method you use will vary, depending on your needs and the customs of your individual spiritual tradition. For this version, begin by standing at your altar with your arms crossed over your chest, and feet together. Face towards the full moon. Say: Goddess of the Moon, You have been known by many names in many lands in many times. You are universal and constant. In the dark of night, You shine down upon us and bathe us in Your light and love. I ask You, O Divine One, to honor me by joining with me, and allowing me to feel Your presence within my heart. Move your feet apart to about shoulder width, and raise your arms up and out to welcome the Goddess into you. The next part is one that you can memorize and learn, or you can speak spontaneously from the heart. You may begin to feel a surge of energy, a palpable tingle – don’t worry, that’s the Goddess making Herself known to you. Feel free to change these words as you like. You are speaking for Her, in Her voice, so let Her say what She wishes. Say: I am the Mother of all life, the One who watches over all. I am the wind in the sky, the spark in the fire, the seedling in the earth, the water in the river. Continue with: I am the vessel from which All Things spring forth. Honor Me from within your heart! Remember that acts of love and pleasure are My rituals, and that there is beauty in all things. Honor Me on this night of the full moon! I have been with you since the moment you were created, and shall remain with you always. Let there be beauty and strength, wisdom and honor, humility and courage within you. If you need Me, call upon Me and I shall come to you, for I am everywhere, always. Honor Me as you seek knowledge! I am the Maiden, the Mother and the Crone, and I live within you. Feel the power of the Goddess within you. When you are ready, conclude with: I look down upon the sands of the desert, I crash the tides upon the shore, I shine on the mighty trees of the forests, and watch with joy as Life continues every cycle. Be true to Me, honoring that which I have created, and I shall be true to you in return. With harm to none, so it shall be. Take a few moments to stand and bask in Her glow, and to meditate upon that which you have just experienced. Once the energy surge has subsided, lower your arms, and proceed with your ceremony as you normally would at the conclusion of a ritual. Tips Drawing Down the Moon is often considered an altered state of consciousness, a ritual possession by the Divine. It is not uncommon to feel the energy of the Goddess for quite some time following Drawing Down the Moon, so don’t be alarmed if you feel a heightened sense of clarity over the next few days. You may also feel extremely emotional – it's not uncommon to cry or laugh spontaneously during this rite. The above ritual is a customized one, but for more variations on Drawing Down the Moon, there are excellent versions in Wicca For One by Raymond Buckland (pp. 87 – 89 and The Grimoire of Lady Sheba (pp. 167 - 168).